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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1988-10-17 - City Commission Special Meeting Minutesti 0� T 4 U n <OR pP 7525 NORTHWEST 88TH AVENUE TAMARAC, FLORIDA 33321-2401 TELEPHONE (305) 722-5900 OCTOBER 14, 1988 RECORD OF COUNCIL ACTIONS/DISCUSSIONS SPECIAL MEETING CITY COUNCIL OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA There will be a Special Meeting of the City Council on Monday, October 17, 1988, at 2:30 P.M., in City Hall, 7525 N.W. 88th Avenue, Tamarac, in Conference Room #1. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the agenda item regarding the partial release of retainage in the amount of $354,243.00 to James A. Cummings, Inc. for the construction of the Tamarac Municipal Complex, City Hall Building. FINAL ACTION: APPROVED partial release of retainage in the amount of $289,243.00 to James A. Cummings, Inc. All meetings are open to the public. CAROL A. EVANS CITY CLERK Pursuant to Section 286.0105, Plorida Statutes If a person decides to appeal any decision made by the city Council with respect to any matter considered at such meeting or hearing, he will need a record of the proceedings and for such pt+.rpose, he may need to ensure that a verbatim record includes 6 testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER POLICY OF NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF HANDICAPPED STATUS CITY OF TAMARAC CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING MONDAY, OCTOBER 17, 1988 TAPE 1 CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Abramowitz called this meeting to Order on Monday, October 17, 1988 at 2:35 P.M. in Conference Room #1 (City Clerk's Office) . PRESENT: Mayor Norman Abramowitz Vice Mayor Jack Stelzer Councilman Dr. H. Larry Bender Councilman Bruce Hoffman Councilman Henry Rohr ALSO PRESENT: John P. Kelly, City Manager Patricia Marcurio, City Clerk's Office Manager DISCUSSION of the partial release of retainage in the amount of $354,243.00 to James A. Cummings, Inc. SYNOPSIS OF ACTION: APPROVED tT a release of $289,243.00. Mayor Abramowitz said there was general dissatisfaction regarding the workmanship in the Municipal Complex. He said before the final payment was made, the City Council requested that the City Manager pose the questions and get the answers to these deficiencies. City Manager Kelly said the City Hall project was generally completed and the contract for the work by James A. Cummings, Inc., encompassed some of the work on City Hall. He said there was a balance of approximately $700,000.00 in work needed for the City Hall such as landscaping and the work needed was separate from the contract with James A. Cummings, Inc. City Manager Kelly said the contract provisions required the City to release retainage towards completion providing the City was satisfied. He said the money had to be released by approval by the City Council only and until the Construction Manager, Keith Emery, and staff assured the City Council that the project was complete, the money would not be released. City Manager Kelly said he discussed the concerns of the project with Mr. Emery. He said the Public Works Department was concerned with the Air Conditioning warranties and operating manuals and these matters have been addressed to the City's satisfaction. He said Mr. Emery maintained most of these Items; however, the manuals have not been given to the Public Works Department because Mr. Emery was reviewing them. City Manager Kelly said the communication system with the Police Station (Annunciated System) did not involve James A. Cummings, Inc. and this could not be addressed at this time. Page 1 10/17/88 City Manager Kelly said finalized drawings would be given to the Building, Engineering, Public Works and Fire Departments as they are completed. City Manager Kelly said the City Council should address the deficiencies with Mr. Emery at this time. Mayor Abramowitz said he wanted to know about the deficiencies and how the staff could be comfortable without a punch list. He said the City had to depend on staff and until a punch list was available, he could not be happy with approving release of the money. C/M Hoffman asked how much monies were being held against the sub --contracting work and Keith Emery, President of Construction Management, Inc., said there were several Items concerning sub -contractors. He said the monies were being held because they were under a one-year warranty and he held back approximately 10%. Mr. Emery said everything done on this project was documented to Bob Jahn, previous Chief Building Official. He said in addition to the monies there was a punch list. He said six weeks ago, there was a walk through inspection which took approximately six weeks. Mayor Abramowitz asked who did the inspection and Mr. Emery said he, his staff, the architect and the general contractor. Mayor Abramowitz asked if the City's staff was involved and Mr. Emery replied, no. Mr. Emery said when the inspection was done, the punch list was checked as to what was completed and not completed. He said approximately 90% of the Punch List was completed and the percentage remaining was discussed with the architect and general contractor. He said an estimate of the work needing correction or completion was determined and the amount involved was approximately $10,000.00. Mr. Emery said the contract indicated that the owners were obligated to pay the general contractor a portion of the retainage predicated upon how much was left to complete; however, the owner should not hold more than three times the cost of work that was to be completed. Mr. Emery said after the release of $354,243.00, there would be approximately $85,000.00 remaining. He said the contract indicated that the balance would not be paid until every item was completed including the documentations and until the City was satisfied. He said $354,243.00 should be released legally as to the contract and he recommended the money be released. C/M Hoffman asked if the air conditioning was part of the monies being released and Mr. Emery said the air conditioning system was supplied and installed as per the contract document; however, there have been problems with the manufacturer's equipment. Mr. Emery said the manufacturer has recognized these problems and they would have the matter corrected. He said there was nothing wrong with the system except for the air handler system for only one quadrant. He said he would be holding back monies until this matter is corrected. Page 2 1 1 1 10/17/88 Mayor Abramowitz asked if there were special work orders to be paid out of the balance of the monies and Mr. Emery said there were some Change Order monies involved which were credits and debits to the City. Mr. Emery said by the time these matters are completed, the balance would be approximately $80,000.00. Mayor Abramowitz asked if there was a problem with sinkage in the parking lot and Mr. Emery said he was not aware of this being a problem. Mayor Abramowitz asked what type of air conditioning system was specified and Mr. Emery said the system specified was Bone Equipment which was installed in the Building. Mayor Abramowitz asked if there was a change and Mr. Emery said the manufacturer was changed. Mayor Abramowitz said he understood that the type of equipment in the specifications was changed and Mr. Emery said the equipment was changed 3 years ago before the documents were changed and before he took over the project. Mayor Abramowitz asked if there was a difference in price as budgeted and Mr. Emery said when he took over the project, nothing was budgeted. Mayor Abramowitz said the original system was supposed to be $280,000.00 and then equipment was purchased for $195,000.00. Mr. Emery said the original contract was the cost of the equipment. Mayor Abramowitz said the landscaping was not included in the retainage and Mr. Emery said there were some areas done by the general contractor; however, a lot of the areas were done separately to save the City 30%. Mayor Abramowitz asked what areas were the general contractor's responsibility and Mr. Emery said the plants and shrubbery in the front. Mayor Abramowitz asked how much money was involved in the general contractor's responsibility for landscaping and Mr. Emery replied, $75,000.00. Mr. Emery said planting was not involved. He said ground covering shrubbery, sod, etc. C/M Rohr asked if the sprinkler system was the general contractor's responsibility and Mr. Emery replied, yes. C/M Rohr asked if the sprinkler system was included in the $75,000.00 and Mr. Emery replied that the sprinkler system was a separate matter. Mr. Emery said the planting system was approved by the City's Building Department. Mayor Abramowitz asked if staff approved the landscaping and Mr. Emery replied, yes. Mayor Abramowitz said the planting around the building was never appropriate and Mr. Emery said this matter concerned the architect, not the general contractor. He said the plants installed were specified in the plans by the architect. C/M Hoffman asked if dead plants were specified and Mr. Emery said if the plants died within one year, it was warranted and would be replaced. He said many have been replaced and more would be replaced. He said the project was bonded from the time of substantial completion for one year. Page 3 10/17/88 Mayor Abramowitz asked who determined in the specifications what the quality of the plants were and Mr. Emery said the architect would make the determination during the final inspection. Mayor Abramowitz said he would be very embarrassed if staff approved the landscaping. He said the landscaping was horrible and he understood that the landscaping was not approved. He said he was the first one to give a Person the money if the job was completed; however, he would like to know who was responsible and who was holding the money. Mayor Abramowitz said this matter had nothing to do with Mr. Emery personally. He said Mr. Emery worked for the City/City Council and if the City Council was dissatisfied, Mr. Emery had to work very hard to satisfy them. He said he was confused with who was responsible for the work. He said James A. Cummings, Inc., was the primary contractor who planted the landscaping and it was not appropriate for the amount paid for the plants and work. Mr. Emery said if plants were dying they would be replaced; however, the contractor could only plant what was designed. He said he worked for the City 210% and Mayor Abramowitz said he was aware of this. Mr. Emery said he has had several disagreements with the general contractor for approximately 3 years on behalf of the City. He said he would not advise the City to do anything if it was not in the best interest of the City. He said the contractor was only responsible for planting what was specified, Mayor Abramowitz asked if the architects were responsible for specifying the plants and Mr. Emery said yes. Mayor Abramowitz suggested that negotiations take place with the architects because the landscaping was inappropriate. Mr. Emery said he agreed with Mayor Abramowitz's concern; however, the general contractor was paid to place the specified landscaping around the Municipal Complex. Mayor Abramowitz said he would not vote to give the general contractor the money until the City Manager brought in an expert to judge the quality of planting. He asked if the City paid for number' one quality and Mr. Emery said the City paid for the design in the specifications. Mayor Abramowitz asked what type of quality was planted and Mr. Emery said on a scale of 1 to 10, the City received a 5. Mayor Abramowitz asked if the architect designated minimum or top quality plants and Mr. Emery said middle quality was specified. Mayor Abramowitz asked what the specifications indicated and Mr. Emery said the program did not indicate the type of plants to install. Mayor Abramowitz asked how much money the City spent for the plants and Mr. Emery said the City paid for middle quality. Mayor Abramowitz said he would not vote for this matter until he received the invoices and until the City Council was satisfied with what they were paying for. He said Page 4 10/17/88 the City needed to resolve this matter with whoever was responsible and the City should not pay any money until it is resolved. Mayor Abramowitz said the City had a building that would probably win an architectural award surrounded by junk. Mr. Emery said he agreed with the City Council's concern; however, he did not agree with the City placing the blame on the general contractor and withholding his money. Mayor Abramowitz asked Mr. Emery if he paid his bills without knowing what he was paying for and Mr. Emery replied, no. Mayor Abramowitz said he was the first person to recommend Mr. Emery to other people; however, there seemed to be something wrong with this matter. Mr. Emery said when he and the City Manager took over the project, the project was disgraceful. Mayor Abramowitz said he was not faulting Mr. Emery and he asked that Mr. Emery not take this matter personally. He said the general contractor was entitled to the money; however, he was not going to have $75,000.00 worth of landscaping that was junk while holding only $85,000.00. He said there have been comments regarding a million dollar bond and Mr. Emery said the City had a 4.5 million dollar bond. Mayor Abramowitz said he did not want to fight the bonding company because it would be disgraceful in legal fees. Mr. Emery said if the City Council approved paymment of $354,243.00 to the general contractor, which he recommended be paid, and the contractor walked away, he guaranteed that the defected matter would be corrected with having $60,000.00 remaining. Mayor Abramowitz said he wanted the record to indicate that he was not in favor of paying the general contractor the money. He said if the general contractor needed the money, he would not object to giving some of the money; however, he was informed that the parking lot was sinking. He said Mr. Emery indicated that he was not aware of the problem. He said when everything is completed and paid for, the City Council would be responsible and he was unhappy with the work and would vote to deny the payment. Mr. Emery said the City Council's unhappiness was valid; however, it was not valid to tell the general contractor that he could not get paid for something that was specified in the plans. Mayor Abramowitz asked Mr. Emery if he made mistakes and Mr. Emery said all of the time and this was how he learned. Mayor Abramowitz said he did not want Mr. Emery to make a mistake on this matter. He said he did not want to deny the general contractor the money; however, he was unhappy with the balance. He said he would recommend that the City Council pay the general contractor some of the money. Mayor Abramowitz asked how much the contract was for the general contractor and Mr. Emery said the contract was approximately 4.3 million. Mayor Abramowitz asked how much percentage was against the contractor. Page 5 10/17/88 Mr. Emery said there were some legal ramifications in the contract and he was trying to avoid the City from getting sued. He said he knows the legal ramifications in construction which was why he was trying to guide the City. He said if the general contractor did not do the work according to the specifications and plans, this matter would be moot; however, the general contractor did what was supposed to be done and the City could not use it as a criteria for not paying the general contractor. Mayor Abramowitz said the general contractor and Mr. Emery indicate that the matter was not the general contractors problem; however, he wanted to look at the contract again. Mr. Emery said the contract did not specify the plans. He said the contract was drafted and signed before he took over the job; however, the contract gave the architect the right to design the building as per the program. He said the program did not indicate the type of plants in the matter. Mr. Emery said the architect goes to the necessary authorities while designing for approval. Mayor Abramowitz said the Departments have expressed their disapproval from the first day the City moved into the building. Mr. Emery said he understood this; however, the general contractor was not responsible. City Manager Kelly said he did not approve of the landscaping; however, the Planning Department has informed him that the landscaping was according to specifications. He said the general contractor was not responsible for the outcome, he was only responsible for doing what he was told. He said it was like an electrician placing a wire in an area in which it was supposed to be placed and the recipient was not satisfied with the wire because it was not doing what the recipient thought it would do. Mayor Abramowitz said there was a difference because someone had to designate the quality of landscaping. He asked if the plants could be bought at Kmart, planted and considered meeting specifications. Mr. Emery said when the plans were designed, they went through the different Departments for approval. Mayor Abramowitz said if the Departments approved rose bushes, were the rose bushes were bought at a low or high cost and Mr. Emery said the generic terms and conditions were specified on the plans. Mayor Abramowitz asked if the quality was specified and Mr. Emery said the generic and botanical description of each plant was specified on the plans. He said the plans dictated the quality. Mr. Emery said the Planning Department reviewed the specifications and the general contractor has done what was supposed to be done. He said if the architect specified a low quality plant, it was not the general contractor's fault. C/M Hoffman said he wanted to withhold $150,000.00 as opposed to $85,000.00. He asked if the general contractor would accept this. Page 6 1� 10/17/88 1 TAPE 2 1 1 Mr. Emery said as per the contract and the estimation, the amount to be withheld exceeded what it should be. C/M Hoffman said if the City exceeded the balance now, they could go higher. Mayor Abramowitz said Mr. Emery was taking this personally and the City Council was not doing this. Mr. Emery said he was concerned with being sued and Mayor Abramowitz said he did not want to be sued either. C/M Hoffman asked if Mr. Emery was concerned with the City being sued or of suit being made against Mr. Emery and Mr. Emery said if the City was sued, he would be sued as well. C/M Bender said at the north end of the parking lot there were dead trees and he asked the people who withdrew those trees if there was a reason for the death of the trees. He said he was informed that the area had a lot of water which caused root rot. He said new trees were planted and they also died. He asked who was responsible for placing the proper tree in the area that would grow. Mr. Emery said the area did not involve the general contractor. He said that area was handled by a separate sub -contractor. He said this matter was being reviewed until a tree that would grow in the area was found. C/M Rohr said he understands that the general contractor was not to blame for the type of landscaping planted; however, he did not feel that $354,243.00 should be given until the matter is resolved. V/M Stelzer asked why $85,000.00 was being retained from the general contractor if the landscaping was subcontracted with someone different. Mr. Emery said the general contractor did some of the landscaping. V/M Stelzer said 10% was being withheld for the air conditioning; however, there were several problems with the system. Mr. Emery said the Punch List was checked and an estimate was determined in the amount of approximately $10,000.00. He said by the contract $30,000.00 should be held back; however, he was requiring $85,000.00 be withheld. He said the City Council should not be uncomfortable because there was not $85,000.00 worth of work to be completed. V/M Stelzer asked if the audio visual equipment was working and City Manager Kelly replied, yes. Mayor Abramowitz said there was a problem in the Council Chambers with distortion in the microphones. Mr. Emery said this matter was a problem because of the extension of the mikes and the sound has to be readjusted. He said this matter would be corrected very soon. C/M Hoffman asked Mr. Emery if he was comfortable with withholding $85,000.00 and Mr. Emery replied, absolutely. C/M Hoffman said he would be comfortable in withholding $150,000.00 and, if the general contractor felt that the money could be returned faster through a lawsuit, that was the general contractor's decision. Page 7 10/17/88 Mr. Emery said the work has been estimated and there was not $85,000.00 worth of work to left to do. C/M Hoffman said in another month the City Council may be more comfortable in returning the money. Mayor Abramowitz said within the next week, he would like to receive documentation from staff regarding the problems. He asked if there was a problem with the parking lot sinking. Bob Foy, Director of Utilities/Engineering, said there was a problem; however, he was not aware of the matter until he recently made a telephone call. He said when the building was signed off, there was no problem, however, there are puddles being noticed and the bullrush has to be corrected. Mr. Emery said if he was informed of these matters, he would see that they are corrected. He said the general contractor was visiting the City daily; however, if the sub -contractors were not getting paid, they would not be doing their job. Mayor Abramowitz said he understands Mr. Emery's concern; however, for the benefit of the City and Mr. Emery, he could not vote to give the general contractor $354,243.00. City Manager Kelly said staff has seen Punch Lists and participated in the inspections such as lighting, electrical and air conditioning. He said Bob Jahn went with Mr. Emery on Punch List inspections and all of the Departments were asked to provide individual Punch Lists and wish lists their Departments. He said the Punch Lists were submitted and the wish lists were addressed as much as possible. City Manager Kelly said the general contractor wanted the money and the additional work needed would be done. He said the general contractor may claim that all of the work was completed and the City was withholding money. Mayor Abramowitz said there are a lot of problems that staff and Mr. Emery were not aware of and, until he received staff's approval by signing off on the documents, he could not be satisfied with returning the money to the general contractor. City Manager Kelly said during the release of the final retainage, the staff would make their final signature to assure that the work was properly done and inspected. Mr. Emery suggested that the City Council withhold $125,000.00 if they were not comfortable with $85,000.00. V/M Stelzer suggested the general contractor be given $250,000.00 as opposed to $354,234.00 and Mr. Emery said if he held back this much money, the remaining of the work would not be done in 30 days, it may not be completed for 6 months. C/M Hoffman MOVED to WITHHOLD $150,000.00 from the retainage for James A. Cummings, Inc. Mr. Emery said he would feel more comfortable in the interest of the City if they released $300,000.00 to James A. Cummings, Inc. He said this would leave $130,000.00 as a balance. Page 8 10/17/88 1 1 d * C/M Hoffman AMENDED his MOTION to release $289,243.00 * retainage to James A. Cummings, Inc., SECONDED by C/M Rohr. VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE City Manager Kelly asked what the City Council wanted the general contractor to do. C/M Hoffman said in a matter of 2 weeks, staff would review the project and report back to the City Manager on what the general contractor should do. Mayor Abramowitz said he would like to find out if the City got what they paid for in the landscaping. He said he wanted staff to know that when they signoff on the documents stating their approval, they are responsible for the work completed. Mr. Emery asked if the money could be drawn through the Finance Department within 24 hours and Mayor Abramowitz said this matter should be discussed with the City Manager. With no further business, Mayor Abramowitz ADJOURNED this meeting at 3:30 P.M. N MAN ABRAMOWITZ, MAYOR CAROL A. EVANS, CITY CLERK' "This public document was promulgated at a cost of $112.40 or $3.12 per copy to inform the general public, public officers and employees of recent opinions and considerations of the City Council of the City of Tamarac." Page 9 CITY OF TAMARAC / APPR VED AT MEETING OF City Clerk